Thou must not in the mean while, here forgot,
Lie in this miserable loathsome plight,
Neglected. I already have made way
To some Philistian lords, with whom to treat
About thy ransom: well they may by this
Have satisfied their utmost of revenge,
By pains and slaveries, worse than death, inflicted
On thee, who now no more canst do them harm.
Spare that proposal, father, spare the trouble
Of that solicitation: let me here,
As I deserve, pay on my punishment ;
And expiate, if possible, my crime,
Shameful garrulity. To have revealed
Secrets of men, the secrets of a friend,
How heinous had the fact been, how deserving
Contempt and scorn of all, to be excluded
All friendship, and avoided as a blab,
The mark of fool set on his front! But I
God's counsel have not kept, his holy secret
Presumptuously have published, impiously,
Weakly at least and shamefully—a sin
οὐ γὰρ θέμις, λαθόντα καὶ φίλων ἄτερ,
κεῖσθαι πινώδους ἐν δύαις ἀλγηδόνος.
πρὸς ταῦτ ̓ ἔγωγε τῶν Φιλιστίνων τισὶν
ἤδη ξυνῆλθον, τῶν λύτρων τῶν σῶν πέρι
σπονδὰς προτείνων· καὶ γὰρ οὖν αὐτοὺς πάλαι
δεῖ τῶν ἀπλήστων σῶν κορεσθῆναι κακῶν,
τοῦ μηκέτ ̓ ἀνθέξοντος, ἐν δεσμῶν πέδαις,
ἐχθρῶν ἐφορμαῖς.
μὴ σύ γ' ἐν τούτοις, πάτερ,
κάμῃς· ἀχρείων δεῖ σ ̓ ἀποσχέσθαι λιτῶν, ἐμοῦγε τὸν δίκαιον ἀντλοῦντος πόνον, ἀσχήμονός μοι ζημίαν γλωσσαλγίας.
καὶ γὰρ φίλου ποτ ̓ ἀνδρὸς ἄτλητον δοκεῖ
λόγους προδοῦναι τοὺς παρηγγυημένους,
τῶν δ ̓ οἵνεκ ̓ ἐκπίπτει τε καὶ πάντων ὕπο
ἀπαξιοῦται μὴ οὐχ ἑταιρείας τυχεῖν
ὁ ταῦτα δράσας, μωρίαν ἐστιγμένος,
καὶ φευκτός, ἀθυρόγλωσσος ὡς, ἐν ἀνδράσι
Θεοῦ δ ̓ ἐγὼ βούλευμα κἄῤῥητον γέρας
ἔῤῥιψ ̓ ἀναιδὴς, ἄθεος, εἰ δὲ μὴ, φρενῶν
ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ, καταγέλαστος ἐν πόλει.
That Gentiles in their parables condemn
To their abyss and horrid pains confined.
Be penitent, and for thy fault contrite,
But act not in thy own affliction, son.
Repent the sin, but if the punishment
Thou canst avoid, self-preservation bids;
Or the execution leave to high disposal,
And let another hand, not thine, exact
Thy penal forfeit from thyself. Perhaps
God will relent, and quit thee all his debt;
Who ever more approves and more accepts
(Best pleased with humble and filial submission)
Him who, imploring mercy, sues for life,
Than who, self-rigorous, chooses death as due;
Which argues over-just, and self-displeased
For self-offence, more than for God offended.
Reject not then what offered means. Who knows
But God hath set before us to return thee
Home to thy country and his sacred house,
καὶ βάρβαροι δὲ νερτέροισιν ἐν βύθοις πέδας τε πολυδάκρυτά τ ̓ ἀθλῆσαι πάθη τοιούσδ ̓ ἔκριναν, μυθοποιοῦντες καλῶς.
κλαίειν πρέπει γὰρ οἷσιν ἥμαρτες, τέκνον,
ἀλλ ̓ οὐ τὰ σαυτοῦ πήματ' αὐτὸν ἐκτελεῖν·
ταῦτα στενάζειν ἔστι, τὴν δ ̓ ὀπισθόπουν
δίκην ἀλύξας, σαυτὸν ἂν σώζοις· καλῶς
ἢ τῷ μέδοντι τήνδε τὴν ποινὴν ἔα,
μηδ' αὐτόχειρ, δράσας περ, ἐν μέρει πάθης. 520 τί δῆθ ̓; ὁ Δαίμων πᾶν τόδ ̓ ἂν χρέος πρόφρων τάχ ̓ ἂν μεθείη, κάρτ ̓ ἐν εὐνοίᾳ τρέφων
νοῦν τὸν ταπεινὸν, οἷος ἐν παισὶν πρέπει
οὐδ ̓ ἂν προείλεθ ̓ ὃς δίκην αὐτοκτόνος
ὑπερθορὼν ἀπέθανε, τόνδε δ' ὃς Θεὸν
τὸ ζῆν παραιτησάμενος ἀπέλαβεν λιταῖς.
κεῖνος γὰρ αὑτοῦ μᾶλλον ἢ Θεοῦ βλάβας
ἔτισεν αὐτόκλητος· ἄσμενος μὲν οὖν
δέχου τὰ σοὶ προκείμεν ̓, ὡς ἡμῖν ἴσως
Θεοῦ τόδ ̓ ἐπιτρέψαντος, εἰς πόλιν σὲ σὴν
ἄγειν κατελθόνθ', ἱερὸν εἰς ναοῦ βάθρον.
Where thou mayest bring thy offerings, to avert
His further ire, with prayers and vows renewed?
SAMSON.
His pardon I implore; but as for life,
To what end should I seek it? when in strength
All mortals I excelled, and great in hopes,
With youthful courage, and magnanimous thoughts
Of birth from Heaven foretold, and high exploits,
Full of divine instinct, after some proof
Of acts indeed heroic, far beyond
The sons of Anak, famous now and blazed,
Fearless of danger, like a petty god
I walked about, admired of all and dreaded
On hostile ground, none daring my affront.
Then, swollen with pride, into the snare I fell
Of fair fallacious looks, venereal trains,
Softened with pleasure and voluptuous life;
At length to lay my head and hallowed pledge
Of all my strength in the lascivious lap
Of a deceitful concubine, who shore me
Like a tame wether, all my precious fleece,
Then turned me out ridiculous, despoiled,
Shaven, and disarmed among mine enemies.
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